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Taxpayer Risks with the Loan Guarantee Program

The Department of Energy (DOE) loan guarantee program carries extremely high taxpayer risk, potentially jeopardizing billions of taxpayer dollars if energy project loans default....

Oil Shale: Failing Taxpayers for Decades

Since the early 20th century, the federal government and private industry have attempted to commercialize oil shale but after years of...

Golden Fleece Awarded to Risk Management Agency for Risking Taxpayer Dollars

Taxpayers for Common Sense awarded the Golden Fleece to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency for wasting taxpayer funds on risk management education for crops ranging from Christmas trees to turf grass....

Subsidizing Oil Shale: Tracing Federal Support for Oil Shale Development in the United States

With fiscal cliff looming, TCS calls for end to government handouts for failed oil shale experiments....

Loan Guarantee Program 101

A basic primer on the Department of Energy (DOE) Loan Guarantee Program and answers general questions on the history, administration, and overall effect of the program....

Farm Bill 101

The Farm Bill is a massive piece of legislation that guides food and farm policy. It covers wide-ranging topics from rural broadband service to farm subsidy payments....

Agricultural Safety Net 101

The agricultural safety net refers to the various federal programs and policies that insulate agricultural producers from the costs of conducting business....

Analysis of FY13 Continuing Resolution: Special Carve-outs

H.J. Res. 117 — Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2013 was released this morning (9/11/2012). TCS staff will be posting relevant documents and analysis as we digest this proposal over the coming days....

DOE Loan Guarantees: Overview, Risks, and More

Created in Title 17 of the 2005 Energy Policy Act, the Department of Energy (DOE) Loan Guarantee Program has received increased scrutiny with the default of a loan guarantee to the solar start-up company, Solyndra....

Record Drought Results in Record Profit

Special interests are always looking for a silver lining. This year, it’s the farm lobby and sympathetic politicians shamelessly taking...

Department of Energy Loan Guarantees: $8 Billion Allocated for Fossil Fuel Projects

While the program was intended for emerging energy technologies, mature industries like coal and nuclear are eligible as well. Congress provided the program with funding in several areas including advanced nuclear reactors, renewable and energy efficiency, front-end nuclear fuel cycle technology, and advanced fossil fuels....

With Agriculture Disaster Aid Congress Pays Now, Hopes to Save Later

Citing record drought conditions throughout the country, the House is debating today legislation to retroactively extend four...

Green Scissors 2012

Left-Right coalition identifies practical steps Congress could take to slash deficits, save natural resources....

Federal-Free Risk Management in Agriculture

Like all businesses, agricultural producers face a number of risks in maintaining a profitable enterprise. Successful management of these...

Government Report Reinforces Need to Harvest Savings in Crop Insurance

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) today released a report detailing the potential to save more than a billion dollars a year...

Crop Insurance: A Federal Cash Assurance Program

Federal crop insurance is a highly taxpayer subsidized program that allows agricultural producers to shift their business risk onto...

DOE Renewable and Energy Efficiency Loan Guarantees

The Department of Energy loan guarantee program that backed Solyndra, a solar panel manufacturer which went bankrupt on August 31, 2011...

Taxpayer-Backed Loan Guarantees for Liquid Coal: Medicine Bow, Wyoming

The Medicine Bow plant has been repeatedly delayed over eight years. Putting the full faith and credit of the U.S. government behind this costly and risky project is fiscally reckless. ...

Department of Energy Loan Guarantee Program: Uranium Enrichment

The Department of Energy (DOE) Loan Guarantee Program was created in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to provide Treasury backed loan...

Department of Energy Loan Guarantee Program: Update on Loan Guarantee Applicants

Passed as part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Title XVII Loan Guarantee Program has $34 billion in...

Department of Energy: Loan Guarantee Program Overview

Created in Title 17 of the 2005 Energy Policy Act, the Department of Energy (DOE) Loan Guarantee Program has received increased scrutiny with the default of a loan guarantee to the solar start-up company, Solyndra....

Super Cuts for the Super Committee

Taxpayers for Common Sense has been working hard to meet the challenge of that the so-called Super Committee is facing - $.12-1.5...

Report Highlights Significant Savings in Essential Air Service Program

Taxpayers for Common Sense is pleased to join National Resources Defense Council, Reason Foundation, and the American Bus Assocation in a...

Comparing Proposals for a National Infrastructure Bank

With extension of the nation's surface transportation program currently being debated in the halls of Congress, policymakers are...

Essentially Wasteful: The Essential Air Service

Congress has split town leaving an important deal unfinished. Yes, the debt ceiling got raised, but there’s another important piece of...

Another Report Points to Taxpayers Losing Billions On Risky DOE Loan Guarantees

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) recently released a report on federal loan guarantees for nuclear power plants, which seriously...

$14 Trillion U.S. Debt Leaves No Room for Treasury-Backed Loan Guarantees for Energy Projects

WASHINGTON, D.C.///June 1, 2011///With Congress poised to move forward on more taxpayer-backed loan guarantees for nuclear, wind, solar,...

Ongoing TCS Analysis of the FY2012 Budget Proposal

The FY2012 Presidential Budget Request was released this morning. TCS staff will be posting relevant documents and analysis as we digest...

Common Sense Cuts—$900 billion in savings over 10 years

The time has come for Congress to begin a serious discussion about how it is going to correct the current budgetary path into deeper and...

TCS Recommended Budget Cuts for the 112th Congress

The time has come for Congress to begin a serious discussion about how it is going to correct the current budgetary path into deeper and...

Solar Development Train Leaving the Station, Without Congress

Congress’ failure to make any progress on energy policy this session is costing taxpayers....

Green Scissors 2010

Taxpayers for Common Sense joined a number of environmental and consumer groups and a bipartisan slate of Representatives today in...

Taxpayer Victory—Senate Strips Energy Loan Guarantees from Emergency Spending Bill

Late yesterday the Senate rejected the House passed Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Bill, which included $18 billion in new loan...

New Report Finds DOE Loan Guarantee Program Riddled with Problems

 The Government Accountability Office released a new report today, finding that the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Loan Guarantee Program...

Another Loan Guarantee Putting Taxpayer Dollars at Risk

On Wednesday, AREVA, a French nuclear power conglomerate, accepted a Department of Energy conditional loan guarantee of $2 billion for...

Federal Loan Guarantees for Nuclear Reactors: Details of the Current Applicants

On February 16, 2010, the Department of Energy offered the first conditional nuclear loan guarantee of $8.3 billion to Southern Company...

Senate Climate Bill Loads up Taxpayer Giveaways

Today Senators John Kerry (D-MA) and Joe Lieberman (I-CT) will release their long awaited climate legislation, the American Power Act....

Energy Department Wants $9 Billion More in Taxpayer-Backed Nuclear Loan Guarantees

Yesterday at a Senate Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee hearing, Energy Secretary Chu said an additional $9 BILLION in...

Risky Business on Wall Street

This morning the federal government (which means you the American taxpayer) became the not-so-proud owner of American International Group...

House Amps Up Energy Loan Guarantees

The Energy Policy Act of 2005 established the Department of Energy (DOE) Loan Guarantee Program to grant loan guarantees for innovative...

Banking on the Future

Investing in Smart Water Strategies for Pennsylvania and the Nation...

From the Ashes

Reducing the Harmful Effects and Rising Costs of Western Wildfires...

Engineering Boondoggles

While Washington is wringing its hands about the automatic across-the-board budget cuts known as...